Presently, camper shell doors pivot on overhead hinges to permit access to the shell interior. The shell door is locked by interior arms which extend across the width of the door in a retracted condition and which are extendible outward in guided manner beyond the door to engage a keeper on either side of the door, generally just the shell frame surrounding the door. Extension and retraction of the locking arms is by central handles or pulls on the inside and outside of the door. Rotation of the handles turns a shaft which extends through the door and depending on the direction of shaft rotation retracts or extends the arms and unlocks or locks the door relative to the camper shell body. The outside handle is lockable with a key to secure the shell against unwanted entry. The interior handle or pull, however, is not lockable, but is slaved to the locked or unlocked condition of the outside handle.
This situation means that when the camper shell is used for overnight accommodation, the occupants must leave the shell door unlocked for convenience of entry or exit, or locked and enter through the truck rear window if possible. Even if the camper shell is accessible from the truck cab, the ever present danger of fire militates against locking oneself within the shell by barring the easy exit route. The alternative, leaving the shell unlocked, exposes the occupants to intrusion by undesirable persons.